Whether it’s the year of birth or the event you consider most special since 1972, you can match each date to a car that has dominated Europe commercially, across all categories.
The data compiled and published by “BestSellingCarsBlog” only refers to the last five complete decades of sales, starting from 1972, the year that marked the end of the reign of the VW Beetle in the Old Continent, before being surpassed by the Fiat 127 in 1973, when the Italian brand placed two cars on the podium, with the 128 at #2.
They were followed by:
1974: Fiat 127
1975: Fiat 127
1976: Fiat 127
1977: Fiat 127
1978: VW Golf
1979: Renault 5
1980-1982: Renault 5
1983-1987: VW Golf
1984: VW Golf
1988: VW Golf
1989: VW Golf
1990: VW Golf
1991: VW Golf
1992: VW Golf
1993-1994: VW Golf
1995: Fiat Punto
1996: VW Golf
1997: Fiat Punto
1998: VW Golf
1999: Opel Astra
2000: VW Golf
2001: VW Golf
2002: VW Golf
2003: Peugeot 206
2004: VW Golf
2005: VW Golf
2006: Opel Astra
2007: Peugeot 207
2008: VW Golf
2009: VW Golf
2010: VW Golf
2011: VW Golf
2012: VW Golf
2013: VW Golf
2014: VW Golf
2015: VW Golf
2016: VW Golf
2017: VW Golf
2018: VW Golf
2019: VW Golf
2020: VW Golf
2021: VW Golf leader; Peugeot 2008 dominates in SUVs and Tesla Model 3 as the best-selling electric car
2022: Peugeot 208
The national top also had an absolute dominator
The data from “BestSellingCarBlog” regarding the Portuguese market only refers to the last 32 complete years of sales, dating back to 1989, the first of four years of leadership for the Fiat Uno, until it was surpassed by the Opel Corsa in 1993, with a phenomenal market share of 11.1%.
The Corsa would be dethroned by another Fiat in 1995, the Punto, which was also #1 in Portugal the following year.
The national top continued as follows:
1997: Opel Corsa
1998: Opel Corsa
1999: Renault Clio
2000: Fiat Punto
2001: Opel Corsa
2002-2003: Renault Clio
2004: Renault Megane
2005-2006: Opel Astra
2007: Renault Megane
2008: Renault Clio
2009: Renault Megane
2010: Renault Megane
2011: Renault Megane
2012: Renault Megane
2013: Renault Clio
2014: Renault Clio
2015: Renault Clio
2016: Renault Clio
2017: Renault Clio
2018: Renault Clio
2019: Renault Clio
2020: Renault Clio
2021: Peugeot 2008
2022: Peugeot 2008
Source: BestSellingCarsBlog
